Meet Abby Friend DAc, MAc, LAc
DOCTOR OF ACUPUNCTURE & INTEGRATIVE HEALTH
Abby Friend Lic. Ac. holds a Doctorate and Masters in Acupuncture (MAc) from The New England School of Acupuncture (NESA), one of the oldest, most rigorous and respected Traditional Chinese Medicine schools in the country, and is licensed by the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine to practice. She completed her doctoral degree from NESA at The Massachusetts School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Abby’s treatment approach fuses modern science with the wisdom of ancient medicine. She specializes in both dry needling, and collagen induction therapy, or microneedling.
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Abby first discovered acupuncture while working at a vet hospital gaining experience before applying to vet school. At the hospital, she saw first-hand how powerfully the animals responded to acupuncture treatments and found the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) model of holistic health was instead more aligned with her medical views.
Abby also worked in other hospital settings including pediatrics at Boston Medical Center, family medicine at Cambridge Health Alliance and veteran services at Pathways to Wellness at the South End Community Health Center where she remained impressed with the impact of TCM. The TCM model focuses on each person as an individual and works to treat the root cause of a problem. Abby found the western model in chronic cases were often treating the symptom, and not addressing underlying disharmony.
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Abby is licensed by the Massachusetts Board of Medicine, a National Board Certified Acupuncturist (NCCAOM), certified in Clean Needle Technique (CCAOM), certified in Auriculotherapy, completed a certified birth doula course through DONA International and is facial rejuvenation certified.
The Modern Acupuncturist Approach
Our passion for Traditional Chinese Medicine is founded on helping patients through a holistic approach by offering alternative solutions. We treat patients from a root cause approach by using an integrative method of healing, looking at the body as a whole, including TCM, diet, lifestyle, and exercise as well as creating an individualized treatment strategy that will target the root cause of each unique system.
We strive to help people lead pain-free lives, focusing on distal meridian posts, and utilizing orthopedic needling triggering specific areas of pain to loosen local and distal muscles thus bringing blood flow to a previously constricted area. We have found that acupuncture is especially helpful in offering relief for disc herniation, plantar fasciitis, migraines, and loosening tight constricted muscles.
Specialty Focus Areas
ORTHOPEDICS
Abby is dedicated to helping people lead pain-free lives by utilizing orthopedic needling triggering specific areas of pain to loosen local and distal muscles thus bringing blood flow to a previously constricted area. This sub-specialty of acupuncture is referred to as Dry Needling, or Motor Point Needling as it fires the muscle’s motor point. Abby completed hundreds of hours in orthopedics to become an expert in this field and can treat complex myofascial conditions.
SKIN HEALTH
Abby also loves helping women feel confident in their skin—naturally. She stays abreast of the latest technology to help promote collagen and elastic production and uses exosomes, Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP), and medical-grade vitamins in her microneedling services to offer you the most effective treatment. She adamantly believes you must internally feel radiant to match how your skin will feel after a session. For that reason, a full acupuncture session is always included during the microneedling procedure.
Abby’s Story
Abby first discovered acupuncture while working at a vet hospital gaining experience before applying to vet school. At the hospital, she saw first-hand how powerfully the animals responded to acupuncture treatments and found the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) model of holistic health was more aligned with her medical values.
The TCM model focuses on each person as an individual and works to treat the root cause of a problem. Abby found that the Western model in chronic cases was often treating the symptom, not addressing underlying disharmony. Abby utilizes both Chinese and Japanese acupuncture styles and tailors the treatment to each individual patient’s needs and comfort.